Fall Out Boy's rejuvenated Riviera homecoming

Fall Out Boy performed at The Riviera in Chicago May 16, 2013. (Scott Strazzante/Chicago Tribune)

Althea Legaspi, Special to the Tribune

"We've been really lucky to be in this band, " Fall Out Boy bassist/lyricist Pete Wentz said midway through their sold-out show at Riviera Theatre on Thursday. "We rep Chicago around the world," he added before recalling their early days playing Metro and Fireside Bowl. That appreciation of their fortunate position shone throughout their sold-out show, where the band's rejuvenation fueled their career-spanning set and second homecoming since they ended their more than three-year hiatus.

During their time apart they each worked on separate projects. Wentz formed the band/DJ project Black Cards, guitarist Joe Trohman and drummer Andy Hurley launched the heavy metal supergroup The Damned Things and singer/guitarist Patrick Stump made an R&B-tipped solo album. And while none gained major traction, their separate outings informed both their show and new album "Save Rock And Roll" for the better, where they embraced their penchant for hook-filled pop-rock with rafter-shaking choruses, while exploring some new genre territory.

Their Riviera stop was part of a sold-out intimate venue tour; they hit arenas in the fall and are headlining Riot Fest in September. And at their Riv show, it was clear that they had grown: they appeared a little less tongue-in-cheek and self-deprecating and instead more sincere and self aware. And that wasn't just demonstrated via lyrics that acknowledged fleeting youth, such as on the dance-funk track "Where Did The Party Go," or on "Alone Together," which yearns for staying "young forever."

Stump's progression was an audible leap forward, too. In their early days, Stump was an apt, if sometimes nervous sounding, conduit for their material. At the Riv, he was a confident frontman, and the fruits of his solo work were to the benefit of every song. Whether he was working double-time wording on "Dance, Dance," propelling from defiant tones to tingly falsettos on "The Phoenix" or displaying vulnerability on "What A Catch, Donnie," his soulful turns were inspired.

Wentz, Trohman and Hurley were equally engaging, the latter setting the pace for their wide-ranging styles, from taut pop-punk rhythms ("Hum Hallelujah") to swaggering grooves ("My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light Em Up)." Wentz and Trohman's helicopter-like spins punctuated the set, and their interplay on the glam rocking "I Don't Care" and the fiery "Chicago Is So Two Years Ago" were particular standouts.

Their three-song encore included the piano-driven, anthemic ballad "Save Rock And Roll," which was not so much a declaration of intent as it was an epic mantra for staying true to one's self, something Fall Out Boy seems lucky to have rediscovered.